Encyclopedia of sacred theology - pagina 542

618

§ 83.

THE FACTORS OF INSPIRATION

[Div. Ill

as in the progress of the revelation of salvation, to which it ran parallel. The content of inspiration is not aphoristic.

The one

rather builds upon the other.

In

its

beginnings,

therefore, inspiration is mostly concentric and deep, and only gradually passes over into detail and moves upon the surface. As a rule, at least, the person to be inspired knew what had formerly been inspired to others, and with these earlier inspirations his own inspiration formed a concatenation of It found in them a It connected itself with these. ideas. thread which it spun to greater length. It is no inspiration now in China, then again in Rome, presently in India or in Elam, but an inspiration which uses men from one and the

same milieu of life, and which historically exhibits a certain conFor which reason the very images perpetuate themtinuity. selves with a certain continuity, and certain forms and ways Just bring to mind of speech pass on from one to the other. the Boot, the Shepherd and the "sheep of his pasture." If on account of this, numerous factors were present in the consciousness of the person about to be inspired for the use of Him who inspires, the same applies to the actual dispensation of

grace in Israel.

There

is

not merely a disclosing of the

holy world above to the consciousness, but the creation as well of a reality in Israel, which bears a holy character.

This has Isaac.

uates

beginning already in the wondrous birth of

its

This reality establishes itself

in

the tribe

of

itself in

the people, accent-

Judah and in the house

of

David; in its usages and institutions; in its holy ceremonials, and in the types which point to the full reality From the nature of the to be realized by the Incarnation. case, this reality also exerted an influence, moulded and fashioned the more finely disposed spirits in Israel, and enriched the consciousness of those who were to be inspired with those ideas and representations and images, which were fit do service in inspiration. It made the language, in which Jehovah was to interpret His Divine thoughts,

in every

way

to

altogether a richer vehicle for inspiration.

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